I’m interested in volunteering at the garden. How can I get involved?

From spring through summer, we host drop-in Garden Hours for volunteers every Thursday from 3:00-6:00 pm and every Saturday from 9:00 am-12:00 pm. In the fall and winter, Thursday Garden Hours are shortened from 3:00-5:00 pm. You are welcome to come to those as you like, no scheduling is required.

For our volunteer hours, we ask that all volunteers fill out a waiver upon arrival on their first day. If you are a minor or intend to bring a minor we ask that the parent or guardian be present to fill out the waiver on your/their behalf. Minors under 13 must be accompanied by an adult during the entirety of their volunteering time. We also ask that you wear weather appropriate clothing and shoes that you don't mind getting dirty! Please bring a water bottle or drink of your choice. 

If Garden Hours are canceled due to inclement weather, we will announce the cancellation on our Facebook and Instagram pages.

If you have any other questions or to receive a weekly email of plans for the upcoming Garden Hours please contact our Land Manager at gardens@downtowngreens.org. Additional information about volunteering can be found here. 

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I’m interested in doing community service hours. Is that something you offer, and how can I get involved?

Voluntary and court-ordered community service is handled on a case-by-case basis.  Please email gardens@downtowngreens.org for more information. 

I’m interested in volunteering with your youth programs. How can I get involved?
 
Our youth programs are currently at capacity and are not accepting additional volunteers and interns. If you are interested in volunteering with Downtown Greens in a different, but equally important, capacity, we encourage you to join us for the weekly Garden Hours listed above. 
 
Alternatively, if you are looking to make an impact directly with our youth programming, Downtown Greens has a Garden Education Wishlist on Amazon. Anything on this list would be greatly appreciated and will make a positive impact. 

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Garden Use

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I’d like to rent out your garden for an event. How can I do that?

The garden is open to the public from sunrise to sunset, 365 days per year. Groups are welcome to gather freely in the garden with the understanding that we will not be able to provide staff support, access to equipment, or bathroom facilities. We also ask that groups pack out any trash immediately following the gathering. 

At the moment, we don't have the capacity to rent out the garden for events; however, we are working on making the garden available to rent out in the future, so check back for updates! 

Do you offer individual garden plots for community members to rent?

We have several gardens, including education gardens for youth garden-based programs and a Take What You Need garden that community members can harvest from themselves. 

Unfortunately, we do not currently offer individual garden plots for community members to rent. We recommend that you look into Cossey Park or Bragg Hill Garden, which offer a limited number of individual garden plots to community members. If you’re looking for time spent working in a garden, we also invite you to join us for our weekly Garden Hours listed above under volunteering. 

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Youth Programs

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I’d like to know more about the different youth programs you offer.

Youth Farm Program
The YFP teaches children how to grow their own food and how to take care of a garden, they learn about different meals and dishes you can make with fresh fruits and vegetables, as well as learning some of the science behind gardening. Additionally, the children get to make garden-related crafts and spend time in community with each other and the educators. For more information, contact our Education Manager at education@downtowngreens.org.

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You'll find more information about all our youth programs here. 

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Services

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I have a bee question/need a bee service. Can you help?

While we do have bees onsite, we do not offer bee services or consultation.

Can your team provide gardening services for my personal garden/organization?

We do not offer outside gardening services. If you’d like to learn more about gardening, please join us for weekly Garden Hours in which we discuss and practice hands-on gardening methods that you can apply to your own yard and garden.

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Donations

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Can I donate pots and garden decor?

We are unable to accept any used garden decor, as they can carry invisible-to-the-eye plant diseases and pests. As you can imagine, we need to avoid bringing these into our garden! We do appreciate you considering us for this donation and if you’d like to help out in another way, please consider making a financial contribution to help defray our operating expenses here. 

We are accepting some terracotta/clay/concrete pots depending on quality and age. If you have any in good condition that you’re looking to rehome, please contact our Land Manager at gardens@downtowngreens.org.

Can I donate tools or equipment?

At this time, we are only accepting tools that are like-new. We have come to find that rusty blades/spades, broken handles, and repaired items have cost us too much in maintenance resources and also carry the risk of carrying disease and pests. We are unable to accept any items that may need repairing or refurbishment, but we do appreciate your consideration. If you are unsure of how to dispose of the item, R-Board Stafford offers several services for recycling and proper disposal of equipment with small engines, metal, and other materials. You can find more information about accepted materials here.

To make sure we are able to accept your item and to coordinate drop-off, please contact our Land Manager at gardens@downtowngreens.org

Can I donate plants?

At this time, we are only able to accept smaller, herbaceous, perennial native plants (no shrubs or trees.) If you have any questions about what is categorized as a native plant in Virginia, the Department of Conservation and Recreation website provides useful resources that can help you determine whether a plant is native or non-native.

Their website provides the common name and the scientific name. The brochures listed under Native Plants for Conservation, Restoration and Landscaping are available by region. Our region is special and plants here can fall under Piedmont, Grasslands, and even Coastal. If you are having trouble identifying a plant and need help, you can contact our Land Manager at gardens@downtowngreens.org and they may be able to help identify your plant with enough pictures and detailed information.

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Compost

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Can I drop off compost at the garden? 

We recently installed a new compost system in our Upper Garden and are accepting compost. Donations are limited to 1 gallon, or what you can fit in a gallon milk container. Any material or scraps must be small enough to break down quickly in the system. Acceptable materials that can be added to the compost system are vegetable and fruit scraps, egg shells, avocado skins, scraps of cardboard with minimal ink on it, dry leaves (no trash bags full of leaves), and coffee grounds and filters. Please do not compost any avocado pits, pistachio shells, meat, dairy, salted or processed foods, glass, plastic, compostable plastic or bags, large cardboard boxes, or pet waste. To avoid flies and other pests, please cover any fresh food scraps with some leaves or grass available in the black bin next to the compost. There is also a list of some compostable and non-compostable materials here.

The compost system is located in our Upper Garden at the corner of Charles and Dixon Street, across from our offices at 206 Charles Street, Fredericksburg VA 22401. If you have any questions or to make sure we are able to accept your donation and to coordinate drop-off, please contact our Land Manager at gardens@downtowngreens.org.

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If you have a question about Downtown Greens that you haven't found an answer for here, please reach out to us. 

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